I approached the beautiful entrance of the Fort Benning army base one night. The grand entrance lit up with bright lights that demanded a high level of respect. The entrance covered the four-lane highway like a bridge with a row of American flags blowing in the wind and high columns on all four corners which proudly boast of soldiers. It is a sight to behold. I was visiting a friend who lived on base, and I had driven this many times before, but that night was different. As I drove under the bridge, I got chills throughout my body as I felt a deep gratitude and appreciation for our military. I was so thankful for the sacrifice each family makes on a daily basis; their commitment to be married to a soldier, to live a transient lifestyle, to raise their children in the absence of a spouse, and to put their own lives in danger. Every military family faces a reality of risk on a level that most nonmilitary people never face. These thoughts consumed my heart and mind as I drove on to the base.
After you pass the grand entrance, everyone is required to stop at a security gate where an officer verifies your ID. The officer handed my ID back and said, “Welcome home.” This was a phrase that they said to everyone as they entered the base. Whether you actually lived on base or were a part of the military didn’t matter at that moment, you were part of the reason they existed; part of a mission to protect our freedom. “Welcome Home” Wow. What a sense of community and belonging; I could feel it, even though I was not in the military. I arrived at my friend’s home nestled in a cluster of colonial homes where soldiers of all ranks lived with their families. This is a huge community who supports one another and loves each other as family. This community knows all too well the meaning of living for someone and something greater than ourselves. We later left base for dinner and upon returning that evening, an officer again took our ID and said, “Take it easy, and welcome home.”
What would life be like if we chose to “take it easy”, and to say to others, “welcome home”? I’m in no way suggesting being a Christian is easy, but I am saying having a relationship that you can lean on to get you through trials and struggles is much easier than attempting to do everything in your own strength. Jesus tells us His yoke is lighter than ours, and we can trade ours for His. Jesus is telling us to “take it easy”. As a Christian, we are part of a community of believers. We should be there to welcome each other home and encourage each other to take it easy when we need rest.
The military understands this, but I am not so sure all Christians do. The military understands the cost of sacrifice, but do we? What are we willing to give up on a daily basis? Sometimes we aren’t even willing to give up time to wait in a drive-thru, much less to sacrifice any desires for a righteous cause. Sacrifice is something we must understand and be willing to do. It’s what Jesus did so that we might live. Our eternity rests on our understanding of who Jesus is and the sacrifice that He made for us.
Why would God ask us to sacrifice if Jesus has already done it? God wants everything that is hindering our relationship with Him removed. If giving up something is a sacrifice for us, then we can lean on God to get us through. Giving something up is only a sacrifice if it costs us something. Sacrifice cost God everything, including His only Son. Why do we feel so unjustly treated when we are asked to sacrifice? Why do we value things and people above our relationship with God?
I encourage you to read the story of Abraham and look at the sacrifice he was called to make. You may also find encouragement reading the story of the widow who gave all she had in the book of Mark, Chapter 12. They each had to choose to give up something they held close, and their choice would cost them dearly. But they each stood to gain so much more because of their choice. They each would gain a deeper trust and faith in God, along with His provision, love, and guidance. When God asks us to sacrifice, it is always for our gain, though sometimes it’s in a realm that we just can’t see. When we begin to see God in the sacrifice, we can take it easy and rest in Him, and then He says back to us, “Welcome Home!”
